The PGA Tour has named Justin Rose the recipient of the 2021 Payne Stewart Award, one of the tour’s foremost accolades which “recognizes character, sportsmanship and a commitment to charity.”
The annual award is named in honor of the three-time major champion who tragically died in a private plane accident in 1999, four months after winning the U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2 and a month following the historic Ryder Cup matches in Boston at The Country Club.
Rose, the 2013 U.S. Open champion and 2016 Olympic gold medalist, along with his wife Kate, have established a foundation geared toward feeding and educating children.
Most recently, the couple established the Rose Ladies Series to provide women with playing opportunities when the Ladies European Tour and other circuits shut down because of the COVID-19 virus.
“The Payne Stewart Award has become an annual celebration of Payne’s impact on the PGA Tour and its players,” said Rose, who is teeing it up this week at the Wyndham Championship.
“I am forever grateful to be connected to a man who was the consummate professional on and off the golf course and will cherish being a Payne Stewart Award recipient well after my playing days are over.”
The Englishman will be presented the award at a ceremony in Atlanta on Aug. 31, ahead of the Tour Championship (Sep. 2-5).
The inaugural Payne Stewart Award was given to Byron Nelson, Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus in 2000. Since then, winners have included legends such as Ben Crenshaw, Tom Watson, Nick Price, Nick Faldo, Davis Love III, Gary Player, Ernie Els and Bernhard Langer, among others.
“Justin Rose embodies everything the Payne Stewart Award represents,” PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan said. “Like Payne, he has been one of the premier players of his generation while using his platform to better the lives of those around him.”
The Kate & Justin Rose Foundation aims to “feed hungry tummies and curious minds” in central Florida. It has raised more than $3 million in providing 500,000 of what it calls hunger-free weekends, along with 300,000 books to 29,000 children.
The foundation partnered with the charity Blessings in a Backpack last year during the pandemic. It has fed nearly 5,000 children on weekends and holidays.
In addition to his U.S. Open major title and Olympic gold medal, Rose is a former world No. 1 and European Ryder Cup stalwart who has won 22 times, worldwide, including 10 PGA Tour titles. In 2018, he captured the FedEx Cup.
